Dana Bauer is a woman of many instruments. She plays oboe, flute, English horn, saxophone and clarinet. That versatility keeps her in demand.

Based in South San Francisco, she often plays in theater orchestras, sometimes with touring companies that come through town, such as “White Christmas” and “The King and I.” Bauer also plays her woodwinds for Bay Area theater companies such as Broadway By The Bay and TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. She is making her Pacifica Spindrift Players debut, with a production of “Cabaret,” through May 28.

But when Bauer performs at Angelica’s in Redwood City on Wednesday evening, the beautiful instrument in the spotlight will be her voice.

Her debut album, “In My Own Voice,” features Bauer’s lovely interpretations of such standards as “Smile,” “Beguine The Beguine,” “I’ll Be Seeing You” and “If I Only Had a Heart,” as well as Broadway numbers such as “Ten Minutes Ago” (from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella”) and the Antonio Carlos Jobim beauty, “The Waters of March.”

At Angelica’s, Bauer will be accompanied by pianist Rick Ferguson, who offers Piano Night at the venue on a regular basis. They met when she went there to hear fellow vocalist Julie Kelly at one of Ferguson’s presentations.

“It was one of those magical things,” Bauer says. “I almost did not leave the house that night — you know, the pull of sweat pants and TV can be difficult to overcome. But I said, ‘Oh, no, I’ve got to get out.’ And I’m so glad I did. The performance was great. And I met Rick. And he went online and listened to my album and he’s been doing this thing on Wednesday nights at Angelica’s. And it all fell into place.”

Bauer had performed at Angelica’s previously, with the Denny Berthiaume Trio. She says, “Peter (Cuschieri), the guy who owns Angelica’s, is so generous. He is such a supporter of the arts. He truly loves music. And they are so great with their performers. And for the public, it’s a wonderful place to go. The food is great. And so is the staff. I’m very excited about working there again.”

Bauer grew up in Vallejo. Her paternal grandmother played the piano and there were a lot of family sing-alongs. Eager to play in the orchestra, Bauer began studying the flute at age 10. “My dad had played the flute, so that seemed like a good choice. It was a good time to grow up in Vallejo. There were a lot of musical groups and activities for kids and people in the community that revolved around music.”

In high school, she began taking private oboe lessons from a musician who played in the theaters of San Francisco. “From that point, I realized that this was something that could turn into an actual career,” Bauer says.

She majored in oboe at San Francisco State, working her way through college by singing with her own band. But Bauer left school when the opportunity arose to be a last-minute replacement in the “A Chorus Line” touring band.

“I left in a New York minute,” she says, laughing. “A girl’s gotta earn a living.”

The 10-week job turned into three years of touring Europe and Asia. Six years on the road with “Les Miserables” followed. It was quite an adventure.

“It was just incredible. I was suddenly lifted from growing up in a small town and suddenly found myself in Munster, Germany, with a bunch of New York musicians and Broadway legends. Most of them wore fur coats and had East Coast accents. It was a very different lifestyle. But it was phenomenal. It was the best learning experience I could ever have.”

Eventually Bauer tired of the travel and got off the road in the early 1990s. Then she started singing again with local bands. Her CD was in the works for a long time and was finally released in 2006. “Everything I do comes from singing. That’s the tree where all branches shoot off from.”

Bauer says her heart belongs to the Great American Songbook. “Back when I was singing with bands at weddings, I would try and stay up with the Top 40. But’s it’s just not that interesting to me. It became so much like a job. I don’t do that kind of work anymore.

“When I’m wearing my instrumentalist hat, I play what other people want me to play. And I take great pride in making sure that it’s very precise and the same the whole time. So when I sing, I want to do what I want to do.”

Her husband, Russ Gold, is a drummer, who also does theater work. In addition to playing in orchestras and vocalizing at jazz clubs, Bauer gives private lessons and does a lot of voiceover work.

Singing continues to be a primary passion. “I just want to keep doing what I love to do.” Bauer says. “And if I can find people who want to listen to me do it, that’s even better.”